Christmas shopping in advance is great for so many reasons. Not only will you have extra time to browse for the perfect gift, but you can also save money and avoid last minute shopping stress. Of course, if you do your shopping early, you will need to figure out where to store these gifts while you wait for Christmas to arrive. Here are some important tips to ensure that your Christmas gift hampers are properly stored until the time comes to spoil your loved ones:
Cold
No matter the type of hamper you choose, it’s essential that you don’t leave it in a location that’s particularly cold. For example, you should never leave a gift hamper in your car or garage. Without a consistent source of heat, your hampers will get too cold and this can damage the contents. Chocolate is the perfect example. When chocolate gets too cold, it actually affects the quality of its flavour as well as the texture. Keep your hampers somewhere safe and out of the cold.
Heat
Like cold temperatures, heat can also damage the contents of your hamper. Again, chocolate will melt and this will affect its appearance and flavour. Heat can also affect any other foods in your hamper such as cheese, smoked meats, and so on. Keep hampers away from radiators, fire places, and any other source of heat. You can still keep your hamper in a room with a heater but you should not place the hamper too close to the heater.
Pets and children
If you have pets or young children, you don’t want them getting into somebody else’s gift. Even if you buy a pet hamper for your furry friend, you don’t want them to enjoy it before Christmas. Of course you also don’t need young children getting into chocolates, sweets, or anything else for that matter! Make sure that you keep the door shut or pack your hampers away in a closet somewhere. Remember not to store your hamper too high up or you might expose it to more heat than you should. Hot air rises and the air above your closet can be really warm. So, instead, make some space inside a closet and keep the hampers out of sight.
Moisture
Moisture and condensation is another common problem. You can help eliminate this problem by not storing your hamper in a cold spot. You should also avoid storing hampers against a wall and on the floor. When placing your hamper on the floor and up against an exterior wall, you can expect condensation to form on the wall and even on the floor. This can seriously damage your hamper. Make sure that you place the hamper at table level and not straight on the floor. If you do place the hamper on the floor, make sure that it is not next to any exterior walls. Exterior walls come into contact with the cold air outside and the warmer air inside which creates condensation. Interior walls have heat on both sides which is why there’s no condensation.
By keeping these guidelines in mind, you can safely store various gift hampers for days or even weeks leading up to the holidays! Your hamper will look just as perfect as it did the day it arrived!